The unholy alliance between immigration officers and illegal immigrants
In exercise of our freedom of conscience, we wish to make a call to our compatriots, to rise against the injustice that is depriving the Zambians of their birth right to enjoy the wealth of this great nation.
The awakening being alluded to is one of patriotism ,which by primary implication is that a person’s moral duty is to place the interests of the nation above one’s own needs. This admonition is directed to government institution or rather public officers in strategic institutionS that process the permits of foreigners to enter into this country for various reasons.
As citizens it has come to our attention that the immigration procedures and therefore the relevant law is being contravened in connivance with some officers – QUID PRO QUO (Latin meaning : something for something:
How for instance can you have a person who can hardly express himself in English or let alone write proper English actually be employed here in Zambia as General Manager even before he has been cleared by the immigration department.For the benefit of those that have not seen the procedures, here it is as reproduced hereunder;
IMMIGRATION PERMITS,FEES AND APPLICATION PROCEDURES
For Clients applying for Residence, Diplomatic, Spouse, Business, Visiting, Study, Temporary, Employment, Temporary Employment, Investor’s, Cross Border, Asylum Seeker’s, and Transit Permits as well as Border passes and Visas
GUIDING PRINCIPLES IN THE ISSUANCE OF PERMITS AND VISAS
The Department’s ‘Immigration Policy’ is based on the following four (4) principles:-
• An Immigrant to Zambia must have a contribution to make in form of skills, profession or capital.
• An Immigrant should not deprive a Zambian of employment;
• An Immigrant should not be a charge on the state.
• An Immigrant intending to settle in Zambia must be in possession of a permit.
Employment Permits
An employment permit allows an individual to reside, enter and re-enter Zambia while in employment during the validity of the permit.
Employment permits are issued by the Department of Immigration to foreigners working in Zambia. The procedures applying for an employment permit are detailed below.
APPLICATION FOR EMPLOYMENT PERMIT
The law requires that applicants secure their employment permits while outside the country .However, Government employees, volunteers, missionaries and investors may apply for their permits whilst in the country. The following procedures shall be followed:
Application Steps
For person employed by a Zambian based business or enterprise:
• Complete application form ( form 23 )
• Obtain two recent passport size photographs
• Police clearance certificate from applicant’s country of permanent residence (proves that applicant has no previous criminal record)
• Certified photocopies of professional certificates (e.g. Zambia Institute of Chartered Accountants, Engineering Institute of Zambia , Medical Council of Zambia, Law Association of Zambia etc.)
• Certified copies of educational diplomas
• Letter of offer of employment/contract;
• Photocopies of the passport
The above is readily obtainable on the immigration department website.It is clear as day as to the requirements of the law , but there are some people who are charged with the responsibility to articulate the aforementioned and implement government policy accordingly but because of greed they are contravening the law.
In most cases the people who they assist to crowd out job opportunities which, by the way Zambians roaming the streets can competently perform exceptionally well, end up perpetrating industrial injustices.They become so arrogant to the extent of not respecting the labour laws.
The end result is that this contributes to the unreasonable high levels of unemployment increased levels of poverty.These same people are the ones that determine wage policies in companies and once they set a foot hold in Zambia ,they embark on re-stocking exercises- brinGing in their own kind in the name of “ expatriates” who are in turn , handsomely remunerated to the detriment of Zambians.It is quite evident that this is endemic in the private sector in particular.
Another case in point is a named Company in the motor trade industry which investigations have revealed that employees of Asian origin have replaced a number of Zambians in unclear circumstances and are performing functions which clearly do not need specialized expertise.This company for some time now had been operating without a human resource department but use unqualified persons in the name of General Managers to perform the Functions of Chief Accountants.
Even at their head office and the branches Zambian employees are treated differently from those of non Zambian origin (who get work permits through dubious means and some working without permits.
We challenge any competent authority, Ministry of Labour, Zambia institute of chartered accountants, Immigration department, Anti Corruption Commission or investigative journalists to carry out an inquiry.
The laws of Zambia with regard to the foregoing are very clear, with particular reference to the Bill of rights of the Zambian constitution and some excepts are reproduced below ,not IN TO – Latin ( in its entirety):
27. (1) The Bill of Rights is fundamental to Zambia’s democratic State and shall be the framework for the adoption of social, political, economic and cultural policies.
(2) The purpose of the Bill of Rights is to fulfill the National goals, values and principles by preserving the dignity of individuals and communities, promoting social justice and realising the potential of all human beings.
(3) The rights and freedoms set out in this Part –
are inherent in each individual and –
(i) are not granted by the State; and
(ii) cannot be taken away by the State;
32. (1) Every person has an inherent dignity and the right to have that dignity respected and protected.
(2) Every person has the right not to have their reputation disparaged.
40. Every person has the right not to be discriminated against, directly or indirectly, on any grounds including race, sex, pregnancy, health, marital, ethnic, tribal, social or economic status, origin, colour, age, disability, religion, conscience, belief, culture, language or birth.
69. (1) A person has the right to employment and to just and fair labour practices.
(2) A worker has the right to –
(a) Fair remuneration and equal pay for equal work;
(b) Work under satisfactory, safe and healthy conditions a reasonable pension or gratuity commensurate with that worker’s status, salary and length of service.
Shibukeni Mwebena Zambia
To the Zambians, we say stand up for your rights, this is your country, if you don’t act now poverty will be passed on to all your generations to come. Let us stop the rot and be patriotic and help the current government fight these injustices as the saying goes, “You may break a single twig but a bunch will be a challenge to break “.
The cry of any meaningful Zambian is “when are we going to wake up as Zambian”.
In conclusion, we wish to reiterate the fact that as Zambians we should not remain docile whilst people undeservedly take full advantage of our economy’s natural and human resources by light of day and cover of darkness. The mantle for fight for our independence by our gallant men and women has to be picked from the ground.There is need now more than ever before to escalate to economic liberation.The toil of our ancestors, let alone their deaths towards this ideal, to bequeath us with the liberties of our country, to enable the Zambians to promulgate and implement an economic agenda, whose benefits are to cover the length and breadth of our mother land, the multiplier effect of which should be passed on to generation to come.
As for those who formed unholy alliances with foreigners to economically brutalize our brothers and sisters, your fall together with your allies is imminent; the fight has just begun… Aluta continua!
May God continue blessing our beloved country…..
By Concerned Zambian
Nice piece of writing. Calling a spade a spade.It has opened my mind.
We have Chinese personal working as gate attendants in Zambia…what skill does one need to open a gate at a restaurant…that brothers and sisters don’t have in Chawama…
Personally, I am enjoying being an immigrant.
The world belongs to everyone and we are all free to seek fortunes wherever we fancy, if you are not aggressive you will be in the dust in your own country or not.
Many Zambians in Diaspora fail to make it because they are stuck on returning to Zambia and building a house. I say make it wherever you are! Kudos to the Chinese.
So what, if you dont want to work in your own country someone will have to do it for you, Zambians are lazy kwapwa, I for one am a citizen of the world, so back off, no one tramps on my rights as long as i have them i can work and live anyway, even Barotse is my country, bite that!
Zambia is a failed state
@2TheEngineer(Australia), only you can say that, for you’re a foreigner where you are and this peace of writing has unnerved you.
Just because we leave abroad doesn’t mean we should not fight for our rights and inheritance back home.
@2TheEngineer(Australia), only you can say that, for you’re a foreigner where you are and this piece of writing has unnerved you.
Just because we leave abroad doesn’t mean we should not fight for our rights and inheritance back home.
@ engineer (australia)
you are a fo.ol to say the least! leavb the failed zed alone concentrate on imprementing developmental projects in the country you are in. are you the first one to be abroad ka chi.kala!!
Forgive the TheEngineer(Australia).You can just judge his reasoning abilities by his failure to elaborate more on his statement.One can`t just write this without stating why.Some people ! Smh.
Before judging The Engineer, one has to look at his comments in the past. The Engineer is consistent in his message and what I read from his statement is that only this can happen in a Failed State. Where no checks by the immigration department that is now letting in such unsavoury characters. Failed State because the Immigration Department officials can bring in such against clear guidelines without fear of discipline. We know that even in the Western countries we do have illegal immigrants who slip through the net but blatant undesirables like the one in the picture and many more who work on construction sites and yet we have many Zambians who can do that work is violation of the law and points to the fact that someone is not doing a proper scrutiny of documents presented against applica
Its a failed state with a failed leadership of grade 3’s
Failed states:
Zambia : Ukwa (grade 3)
DRC : Kabila (grade 7)
South Africa : Zuma (grade 0) – soon to become a failed state.
Hhahahahahahha;;
Ba Engineer Zuma grade 0? nowonder he has no clue of how HIV/Aids is transmitted, i now get it, kwena mwansekesha!
mwati mwalishiba failed state efyo cipilibula
“How for instance can you have a person who can hardly express himself in English or let alone write proper English actually be employed here in Zambia?”
LOL – To be honest, I ask myself that question almost every day when I read the newspapers or LT…. even some of the press statements put out by GRZ are barely coherent!
Well you elected a guy who cant express himself or write in proper English. How does one mourn with the person who has died?
bushe cisungu mulesusha atemwa ma concepts. ukafwa imfwa iibi sana
At Last someone has written. ZAMBIANS, wakeup!!! none of such nonsense happens anywhere. The problem we have is because of poverty, people never want to voice themselves with the fear of losing their Jobs. Let alone jobs, Even Foreign Investment should have at least 50% local ownership. Where have we gone wrong as a country?? When do we empower our own People? When do we protect them in work places?? Our Ministers and Government Officials are very corrupt; they get kickbacks from these same foreign abusers of our systems. What a shame.
Zambians will bend over to serve a foreigner. We have this mentality of worshiping foreigners, for someone stupid reason , we think all foreigners have money. Trust me the same mentality is practiced in Chicago. Our women flock for Nigerians, who simply add up their mileage and dump them. Ba Congole have taken over Northmead market. I lived in congo for close to 2 years, trust me Congolese would not hesitate to sell you out to the immigration. Welcome to Zambia, amanu yaba ku bola. Lwenu, you will soon find yourselves to slaves of foreigners in your own country. Fawazi has taken over CB? Fawazi used to run Kasiba (resturant) selling nsima in 1989-91. Now he owns have the CB? We are simply a cursed nation.
Actually when they say Zambia is no. 7 investment friendly destination, they mean you can come to Zambia and own everything including ministers (even the president by the way), chiefs, minerals, land etc.
@ Bufi, Bboza,Kubeja:: Nice one, Damn you made my day?? True
Zambians go out there, buy huge chunks of land in villages, identify where minerals are found and buy land. common Zambians wake up.
And where will you get the funds needed to invest in such a project? Do you know how much money and years were needed to make Lumwana productive?
When am i going to endorse my president if i start folllowing up foreigners?
Why does it seem like only foreign based Zedians are concerned or the flags are misleading me? I think the onus is on us that are local to push this forward. Or are we not seeing these discrepancies? Lets learn to support each other when one of us stands up against such injustices and not just fight each other over political leaders and their utterances and/or differences that are baseless.
Zambians you are your own enemies id iots. from the grassroots to the top. When u see a foreigner u begin to shake your tails.lnstance in the compounds like Chawama.A Rwandes will b offered a shop to rent but a fellow Zedian will be denied.
Zambians, docility yachilamo even educated pipo! No wonder some unpatriotic politicians even go to the extent of turnishing the name of their country. That aside go to Chawama now,Zambian Tuntembas are burnt by suspected Zambians and foreigners.
By the kennedy Sakeni is dead.Mhsrp. Poverty must not be an excuse 4 de unpatriotism of de fellows responsible 4a immigration.Dey are just criminals nd sick in their minds. ‘Wamonafilesekaseka,’lfipuba fikulu. Do u think it is Sata wu’ll suffer?
The writings depict what has become of Zed, because we have lost our self esteem and dignity which has bequeathed greed and egocentric ambitions than patriotism. Zambia has been transformed into a Nation of Bandits, stealing and corruption has become the order of the day. Every person or corporate bodies in this instance EIZ, ZICA but a few have developed an insatiable habit of self satisfaction just keep up with appearances than their mandate.
We no longer seek prosperity from our sweat but banditry virtues. We are quick to embrace foreign virtues moreover swift to offer praise to good intentions but fail to promulgate that good cause with the bearer of the message. I besiege thee brethren to preserve your dignity only then shall we preserve our mother land.